Written by Sarah

His name is Michael Sheen. You know him, he’s That Guy—that guy from that movie with Helen Mirren (or That Guy from 30 Rock, or That Guy from that movie about Nixon, or That Guy from those vampire/werewolf movies—either set, he’s in both franchises).

I used to love Kate Beckinsale. Ten years ago, she was one of my favorites, and I will always love her a little bit for being Hero in Kenneth Branagh’s Much Ado About Nothing. But then she left her partner Michael Sheen for the director of her crap-but-fun action/horror flick Underworld, Len Wiseman. There was no question who was getting my fanship in the divorce. As much as I loved Kate, I was staunchly Team Sheen.

Kate peaked in 2004. That year she had The Aviator and Van Helsing, which sucked but it furthered her status as an actress who could handle action heroine roles and arty character pieces. That was also the year she married Wiseman, who directed her and Sheen—while they were married—in Underworld. Can you imagine the drama on that set? Married acting couple, she’s steadily moving up the ranks in Hollywood and he’s establishing himself as a solid character actor (by that time, Sheen had already put in his first of three performances as British Prime Minister Tony Blair). Enter the handsome Hollywood director. Kate trades in the current model for the upgrade and I had to break up with her so that I could fantasy-console Michael.

Then something odd happened. Kate’s career stalled. No work released in 2005 and she came back in 2006 with Underworld 2: Useless Sequel. Underworld was fun if not actually good, but the sequel was joyless—probably because Kate, Michael, and Wiseman were all on set. Bound to be awkward. 2006 started Kate’s slide into irrelevancy, but it launched Michael into international fame with The Queen, the second of his Blair performances. And suddenly it’s all about Michael Sheen.

Today Michael is one of the most in demand character actors in the world. Famously cheap Summit Entertainment spared no expense in landing him for the role of evil vampire Aro in the Twilight movies. For Summit, there was simply no other option, it HAD to be Michael, and they paid him more than anybody else in the cast. For ten minutes of screen time he made more than Those Three who had to carry the movie. This December he stars in Tron: Legacy, one of the most anticipated movies of the year for Disney, and they left Comic Con last month raving about the ease of handling Sheen at a major press event and how “humble” and “delightful” he is.

Meanwhile Kate is passing 2010 with no work in theaters and Wiseman has an unnecessary remake of Total Recall on his plate. Maybe he can cast Kate. She needs a job.

Photos attached of Beckinsale and Wiseman yesterday leaving ice skating with Beckinsale and Sheen’s daughter Lily.


Written by Sarah
Photos from Wenn.com